1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to the field of optics and, more particularly, to a method for testing polarization couplings in a birefringent optical system and to the application of the said method to the assembling of components in integrated optical systems.
An integrated optical system mainly consists of a source and a succession of light-conducting elements, optic fibers, optic junctions, optic separators, modulators, etc. The connections between these various elements must be done with care, and precautions have to be taken to reduce unwanted couplings to the minimum.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Conventionally, when an optical system, for example, an optic fiber gyrometer, is studied, a number of characteristics can be measured. These are, for example, losses, rotation in polarization rotation due to faults or to applied strains, etc. But prior art methods cannot be used to locate the faults in the system or to measure them independently of one another.